James Guthrie
Encyclopedia
James Guthrie was a U.S. Senator
from Kentucky
and served as Secretary of the Treasury
in the administration of President
Franklin Pierce
.
, Nelson County, Kentucky
on December 5, 1792. Though his immediate ancestors came from Ireland
, Guthrie was of Scottish
descent. He was lineally descended from a martyr
ed Scottish clergyman of the same name.
Guthrie's father was a pioneer and Indian fighter from Virginia
who developed a large plantation in Kentucky and served in the state's General Assembly
from 1800 to 1805, and again in 1808. Guthrie received his early education in a log schoolhouse. Due to his father's military service, he completed his studies at McAllister's Military Academy in Bardstown.
In 1812, Guthrie found employment on a flatboat
transporting goods down the Ohio
and Mississippi River
s to New Orleans, Louisiana
. After three such trips, he decided this work was unfulfilling, and, along with Ben Hardin and Charles A. Wickliffe
, began to study law under Judge John Rowan. He was admitted to the bar
in 1817, and commenced practice in Bardstown.
In 1821, Guthrie married Eliza Churchill Prather; the couple had three daughters: Mary Elizabeth, Ann Augusta, and Sarah Julia. Eliza Prather Guthrie died in 1836. Sarah Julia Guthrie married chemist
J. Lawrence Smith, after whom the J. Lawrence Smith Medal
is named.
John Adair
appointed Guthrie as Commonwealth's Attorney
for the state of Kentucky, whereupon Guthrie relocated to Louisville
. In 1824, he served on a committee whose aim was to obtain city status for Louisville. The effort failed, but Guthrie was elected to the town's board of trustees, and later became its chair.
The following year, Guthrie was chosen as director of the newly formed Louisville and Portland Canal Company. He was instrumental in securing federal funding for a bypass around the Falls of the Ohio, although newly elected president Andrew Jackson
cut off these funds in 1829. Guthrie secured private funds and completed the canal in late 1830. Within a few years, however, steamboats became too wide for the canal, and it became more of an impediment than an aid.
as a Democrat
to the Kentucky House of Representatives
in 1827. In his first year, he chaired the Internal Improvements
Committee. In this capacity, he promoted construction of a number of roads and canals, as well as a railroad connecting Louisville to Frankfort
. For the balance of his career in the House, he chaired the Committee on the Courts of Justice.
In 1828, Guthrie mustered enough support to secure city status for Louisville; it was the first time a town in Kentucky had achieved city status. He was elected to the new city council, and quickly became chair of its most powerful committee, the finance committee.
Guthrie served in the House until 1831, when he was elected to the Kentucky Senate
. He was twice chosen President Pro Tempore
of that body. He served on the Finance and Education Committees. In 1834, he helped found the State Bank of Kentucky, and served as one of its directors. He unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the U.S. Senate in 1835.
Back in Louisville, Guthrie called for the construction of a new building to house both city and county government offices. Secretly, he hoped Kentucky's capital would be moved to Louisville and the building would become the state's capitol building, but the courthouse and two other projects proposed by Guthrie—a water works and a bridge over the Ohio River connection Louisville to Indiana
—were halted by the Panic of 1837
. The unfinished courthouse came to be known as "Guthrie's Folly", but was still touted in an attempt to bring the capital to Louisville in 1842. All three projects were eventually completed, and Guthrie's Folly became the Jefferson County Courthouse
.
In 1836, a dispute arose among the medical faculty at Transylvania University
. Guthrie encouraged some of the disgruntled faculty members to relocate to Louisville and start the Louisville Medical Institute
, a precursor to the University of Louisville
. In 1843, Guthrie became the third president of Louisville Medical Institute. In 1846, the Kentucky General Assembly chartered the University of Louisville, which subsumed the Louisville Medical Institute. Guthrie became president of the university on December 7, 1847 and served until his death. Working with the Trustees of the Common Schools, Guthrie established a high school that met in the university's academic building; this school became Louisville Male High School
.
Among the other projects Guthrie promoted were the creation of a Board of Health and free public schools in Louisville. He encouraged the city to purchase the turnpike
between Louisville and Portland
(a town now absorbed by the city of Louisville) and to purchase stock in the Louisville and Ohio Railroad. He also convinced the city to buy the land that would become Cave Hill Cemetery, his final resting place. Guthrie served on the Louisville City Council until 1839. In 1845, he was a delegate to a convention on internal improvements
held in Memphis, Tennessee
and chaired by John C. Calhoun
.
Guthrie represented Louisville at the Kentucky Constitutional Convention of 1849. The delegates chose him president over Whig
Archibald Dixon
. The major question of the convention was slavery. Guthrie was an advocate of slavery, and believed that, if freed, the slaves would become vicious and ungovernable. The Kentucky Constitution
of 1850 included protections for slave property, and stipulated that no amendments to the constitution could be proposed for a period of eight years.
President Franklin Pierce recognized Guthrie's financial acumen and appointed him Secretary of the Treasury in 1853. Soon, he became the most influential member of Pierce's cabinet. A hard money
Democrat, Guthrie was opposed to a national bank and to the issuance of small distinctive notes by free and charter banks. He advocated the adopted of a universal currency that would be convertible to gold
on demand. In his first report, he was critical of his predecessor, Thomas Corwin
, because he made private arrangements for debt repurchases. He also accused Corwin of conspiring with a New York
port master to under-report duties
collected and deposit them into a trust. Guthrie caused a brief public uproar by removing the port master from his post.
During Guthrie's tenure, the treasury had large budget surpluses due to the discovery of gold in California
. He used much of these surpluses to pay down the national debt, which shrank from $63 million in 1853 to $25 million in 1857. He also purchased silver
bullion for coinage which aided struggling banks by returning money to circulation and increasing their depleted reserves. He encouraged more efficient processes in the Treasury Department as a whole, and required monthly, rather than quarterly, reports from customs
agents. In 1853, he employed Captain Alexander Bowman
of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
to begin construction of an extension to the Treasury Building
's south wing. Many considered Guthrie to be the ablest Secretary of the Treasury since Alexander Hamilton
.
At the close of President Pierce's term, Guthrie returned to Louisville to serve as vice-president of struggling the Louisville & Nashville Railroad. He ensured that the link between the two cities was complete in 1859, and in 1860, he succeeded John L. Helm
as president of the railroad. He would continue in his capacity as president through the Civil War.
Kentucky delegates to the 1860 Democratic National Convention
in Charleston, South Carolina
favored Guthrie for the office of President. A two-thirds majority of delegates was required to secure the nomination. On the first of many ballots, Guthrie received 35 votes; by the thirty-sixth, he was up to 65.5, but still trailed the leading vote-getter Stephen Douglas, by 86 votes. With no candidate able to secure the needed votes, the meeting adjourned and reconvened in Baltimore, Maryland a month later.
At the Baltimore meeting, Guthrie garnered 10 votes on the first ballot. He received 5.5 on the second ballot, which finally saw Douglas attain the necessary majority. Douglas was defeated by Abraham Lincoln
in the presidential election
. Guthrie was offered the job of Secretary of War
by President Lincoln, but he declined because of age and failing health.
At age 70, Guthrie was elected as one of Kentucky's six delegates to the Peace Conference of 1861
in Washington, D.C.
to devise means to prevent the impending Civil War
. He was chosen to chair the conference's Compromise Committee. He failed in his attempt to re-work and re-introduce the Crittenden Compromise
earlier proposed in Congress by fellow Kentuckian John J. Crittenden
.
The Compromise Committee proposed a plan that included seven constitutional amendments and relied on Henry Clay
's Missouri Compromise
as a framework. Under the committee's proposal, 36°30' north latitude
would continue to divide slave and free territory in the United States, and no more territory would be annexed except with the consent of equal representation from both slave and free states. The delegates to the convention presented this idea to Congress on February 27, 1861 and asked them to call a national convention to consider the question, but Congress rejected this report.
Guthrie personally appealed to President Lincoln to consider the convention's report, but to no avail. Still convinced that war could be averted, he participated in a convention of border states held at Frankfort in May 1861. This convention also failed to avert the war.
During the war, Guthrie's Louisville and Nashville railroad was of vital importance. It was the only rail line originating in the North and terminating in the South. Early in the war, the line was used to transport supplies to the Confederates
in Tennessee
, but after 1861, it was used primarily to benefit the Union. Despite pressure to relinquish control to the federal government, Guthrie remained president of the railroad, which became a frequent target for guerrilla attacks. Combining earnings from both passenger and military rates, Guthrie ensured that the line's infrastructure at the close of the war was superior to what it had been before the war started.
Guthrie was a delegate to the 1864 Democratic National Convention
in Chicago, Illinois. He voted for the ticket of General George B. McClellan
and former Kentucky governor Thomas Bramlette for president and vice-president, respectively. At the convention, he also opposed the Wade-Davis Bill.
's Reconstruction efforts. A supporter of President Andrew Johnson
, he opposed the Freedman's Bureau and the passage of the Fourteenth Amendment
.
On February 7, 1868, Guthrie resigned his position due to ill health. He suffered a stroke on April 8, 1868 which left him paralyzed and bedridden for the rest of his life. On June 11, 1868, he resigned as president of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, recommending General William Tecumseh Sherman
to be his successor.
Guthrie died in Louisville on March 13, 1869 and was buried in Cave Hill Cemetery. The city of Guthrie, Kentucky
and Guthrie Street in Downtown Louisville
are named in his honor.
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
and served as Secretary of the Treasury
United States Secretary of the Treasury
The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...
in the administration of President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce was the 14th President of the United States and is the only President from New Hampshire. Pierce was a Democrat and a "doughface" who served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. Pierce took part in the Mexican-American War and became a brigadier general in the Army...
.
Early life
James Guthrie was born to General Adam and Hannah (Polk) Guthrie near BardstownBardstown, Kentucky
As of the census of 2010, there were 11,700 people, 4,712 households, and 2,949 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 5,113 housing units at an average density of...
, Nelson County, Kentucky
Nelson County, Kentucky
Nelson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2010, the population was 43,437. Its county seat is Bardstown. The county is part of the Louisville/Jefferson County, KY–IN Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...
on December 5, 1792. Though his immediate ancestors came from Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Guthrie was of Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
descent. He was lineally descended from a martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
ed Scottish clergyman of the same name.
Guthrie's father was a pioneer and Indian fighter from Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
who developed a large plantation in Kentucky and served in the state's General Assembly
Kentucky General Assembly
The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky.The General Assembly meets annually in the state capitol building in Frankfort, Kentucky, convening on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January...
from 1800 to 1805, and again in 1808. Guthrie received his early education in a log schoolhouse. Due to his father's military service, he completed his studies at McAllister's Military Academy in Bardstown.
In 1812, Guthrie found employment on a flatboat
Flatboat
Fil1800flatboat.jpgA flatboat is a rectangular flat-bottomed boat with Fil1800flatboat.jpgA flatboat is a rectangular flat-bottomed boat with Fil1800flatboat.jpgA flatboat is a rectangular flat-bottomed boat with (mostlyNOTE: "(parenthesized)" wordings in the quote below are notes added to...
transporting goods down the Ohio
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
and Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
s to New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
. After three such trips, he decided this work was unfulfilling, and, along with Ben Hardin and Charles A. Wickliffe
Charles A. Wickliffe
Charles Anderson Wickliffe was a U.S. Representative from Kentucky. He also served as Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives, the 14th Governor of Kentucky, and was appointed Postmaster General by President John Tyler...
, began to study law under Judge John Rowan. He was admitted to the bar
Bar (law)
Bar in a legal context has three possible meanings: the division of a courtroom between its working and public areas; the process of qualifying to practice law; and the legal profession.-Courtroom division:...
in 1817, and commenced practice in Bardstown.
In 1821, Guthrie married Eliza Churchill Prather; the couple had three daughters: Mary Elizabeth, Ann Augusta, and Sarah Julia. Eliza Prather Guthrie died in 1836. Sarah Julia Guthrie married chemist
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
J. Lawrence Smith, after whom the J. Lawrence Smith Medal
J. Lawrence Smith Medal
J. Lawrence Smith Medal is awarded by the National Academy of Sciences for investigations of meteoric bodies. The medal is in honor of its namesake, J. Lawrence Smith.-Further reading:* Willson, Lee Anne. Presented April 2006....
is named.
Political career
In 1820, GovernorGovernor of Kentucky
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of the executive branch of government in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Fifty-six men and one woman have served as Governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-election once...
John Adair
John Adair
John Adair was an American pioneer, soldier and statesman. He was the eighth Governor of Kentucky and represented the state in both the U.S. House and Senate. Adair enlisted in the state militia and served in the Revolutionary War, where he was held captive by the British for a period of time...
appointed Guthrie as Commonwealth's Attorney
Commonwealth's Attorney
Commonwealth's Attorney is the title given to the elected prosecutor of felony crimes in Kentucky and Virginia. Other states refer to similar prosecutors as District Attorney or State's Attorney....
for the state of Kentucky, whereupon Guthrie relocated to Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. In 1824, he served on a committee whose aim was to obtain city status for Louisville. The effort failed, but Guthrie was elected to the town's board of trustees, and later became its chair.
The following year, Guthrie was chosen as director of the newly formed Louisville and Portland Canal Company. He was instrumental in securing federal funding for a bypass around the Falls of the Ohio, although newly elected president Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
cut off these funds in 1829. Guthrie secured private funds and completed the canal in late 1830. Within a few years, however, steamboats became too wide for the canal, and it became more of an impediment than an aid.
In state government
Guthrie was elected to represent Jefferson CountyJefferson County, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 693,604 people, 287,012 households, and 183,113 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 305,835 housing units at an average density of...
as a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
to the Kentucky House of Representatives
Kentucky House of Representatives
The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form a House district, except when necessary to preserve...
in 1827. In his first year, he chaired the Internal Improvements
Internal improvements
Internal improvements is the term used historically in the United States for public works from the end of the American Revolution through much of the 19th century, mainly for the creation of a transportation infrastructure: roads, turnpikes, canals, harbors and navigation improvements...
Committee. In this capacity, he promoted construction of a number of roads and canals, as well as a railroad connecting Louisville to Frankfort
Frankfort, Kentucky
Frankfort is a city in Kentucky that serves as the state capital and the county seat of Franklin County. The population was 27,741 at the 2000 census; by population it is the 5th smallest state capital in the United States...
. For the balance of his career in the House, he chaired the Committee on the Courts of Justice.
In 1828, Guthrie mustered enough support to secure city status for Louisville; it was the first time a town in Kentucky had achieved city status. He was elected to the new city council, and quickly became chair of its most powerful committee, the finance committee.
Guthrie served in the House until 1831, when he was elected to the Kentucky Senate
Kentucky Senate
The Kentucky Senate is the upper house of the Kentucky General Assembly. The Kentucky Senate is composed of 38 members elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. There are no term limits for Kentucky Senators...
. He was twice chosen President Pro Tempore
President Pro Tempore of the Kentucky Senate
President Pro Tempore of the Kentucky Senate was the title of highest ranking member of the Kentucky Senate prior to enactment of a 1992 amendment to the Constitution of Kentucky....
of that body. He served on the Finance and Education Committees. In 1834, he helped found the State Bank of Kentucky, and served as one of its directors. He unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the U.S. Senate in 1835.
Back in Louisville, Guthrie called for the construction of a new building to house both city and county government offices. Secretly, he hoped Kentucky's capital would be moved to Louisville and the building would become the state's capitol building, but the courthouse and two other projects proposed by Guthrie—a water works and a bridge over the Ohio River connection Louisville to Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
—were halted by the Panic of 1837
Panic of 1837
The Panic of 1837 was a financial crisis or market correction in the United States built on a speculative fever. The end of the Second Bank of the United States had produced a period of runaway inflation, but on May 10, 1837 in New York City, every bank began to accept payment only in specie ,...
. The unfinished courthouse came to be known as "Guthrie's Folly", but was still touted in an attempt to bring the capital to Louisville in 1842. All three projects were eventually completed, and Guthrie's Folly became the Jefferson County Courthouse
Louisville Metro Hall
The Louisville Metro Hall, formerly the Jefferson County Courthouse or Louisville Courthouse, is the center of Louisville, Kentucky's government. The building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972...
.
In 1836, a dispute arose among the medical faculty at Transylvania University
Transylvania University
Transylvania University is a private, undergraduate liberal arts college in Lexington, Kentucky, United States, affiliated with the Christian Church . The school was founded in 1780. It offers 38 majors, and pre-professional degrees in engineering and accounting...
. Guthrie encouraged some of the disgruntled faculty members to relocate to Louisville and start the Louisville Medical Institute
Louisville Medical Institute
The Louisville Medical Institute was a medical school founded in 1837 in Louisville, Kentucky. It would be merged with two other colleges into the University of Louisville in 1846 and is considered the ancestor of the university's present day medical school....
, a precursor to the University of Louisville
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville is a public university in Louisville, Kentucky. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of the first universities chartered west of the Allegheny Mountains. The university is mandated by the Kentucky General...
. In 1843, Guthrie became the third president of Louisville Medical Institute. In 1846, the Kentucky General Assembly chartered the University of Louisville, which subsumed the Louisville Medical Institute. Guthrie became president of the university on December 7, 1847 and served until his death. Working with the Trustees of the Common Schools, Guthrie established a high school that met in the university's academic building; this school became Louisville Male High School
Louisville Male High School
Louisville Male Traditional High School is a public secondary school serving students in grades 9 through 12 in the southside of Louisville, Kentucky, USA. It is part of the Jefferson County Public School District....
.
Among the other projects Guthrie promoted were the creation of a Board of Health and free public schools in Louisville. He encouraged the city to purchase the turnpike
Toll road
A toll road is a privately or publicly built road for which a driver pays a toll for use. Structures for which tolls are charged include toll bridges and toll tunnels. Non-toll roads are financed using other sources of revenue, most typically fuel tax or general tax funds...
between Louisville and Portland
Portland, Louisville
Portland is a neighborhood and former independent town two miles northwest of downtown Louisville, Kentucky. In its early days it was the largest of the six major settlements at the Falls of the Ohio River, the others being Shippingport and Louisville in Kentucky and New Albany, Clarksville, and...
(a town now absorbed by the city of Louisville) and to purchase stock in the Louisville and Ohio Railroad. He also convinced the city to buy the land that would become Cave Hill Cemetery, his final resting place. Guthrie served on the Louisville City Council until 1839. In 1845, he was a delegate to a convention on internal improvements
Internal improvements
Internal improvements is the term used historically in the United States for public works from the end of the American Revolution through much of the 19th century, mainly for the creation of a transportation infrastructure: roads, turnpikes, canals, harbors and navigation improvements...
held in Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
and chaired by John C. Calhoun
John C. Calhoun
John Caldwell Calhoun was a leading politician and political theorist from South Carolina during the first half of the 19th century. Calhoun eloquently spoke out on every issue of his day, but often changed positions. Calhoun began his political career as a nationalist, modernizer, and proponent...
.
Guthrie represented Louisville at the Kentucky Constitutional Convention of 1849. The delegates chose him president over Whig
Whig Party (United States)
The Whig Party was a political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. Considered integral to the Second Party System and operating from the early 1830s to the mid-1850s, the party was formed in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and his Democratic...
Archibald Dixon
Archibald Dixon
Archibald Dixon was a U.S. Senator from Kentucky. He represented the Whig Party in both houses of the Kentucky General Assembly, and was elected the 12th Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky in 1844, serving under Governor William Owsley. In 1851, the Whigs nominated him for governor, but he lost to...
. The major question of the convention was slavery. Guthrie was an advocate of slavery, and believed that, if freed, the slaves would become vicious and ungovernable. The Kentucky Constitution
Kentucky Constitution
The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the document that governs the Commonwealth of Kentucky. It was first adopted in 1792 and has since been rewritten three times and amended many more...
of 1850 included protections for slave property, and stipulated that no amendments to the constitution could be proposed for a period of eight years.
In national government
Hard money (policy)
Hard money policies are those which are opposed to fiat currency and thus in support of a specie standard, usually gold or silver, typically implemented with representative money....
Democrat, Guthrie was opposed to a national bank and to the issuance of small distinctive notes by free and charter banks. He advocated the adopted of a universal currency that would be convertible to gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
on demand. In his first report, he was critical of his predecessor, Thomas Corwin
Thomas Corwin
Thomas Corwin , also known as Tom Corwin and The Wagon Boy, was a politician from the state of Ohio who served as a prosecuting attorney, a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, the United States House of Representatives, and the United States Senate, and as the 15th Governor of Ohio 20th...
, because he made private arrangements for debt repurchases. He also accused Corwin of conspiring with a New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
port master to under-report duties
Duty (economics)
In economics, a duty is a kind of tax, often associated with customs, a payment due to the revenue of a state, levied by force of law. It is a tax on certain items purchased abroad...
collected and deposit them into a trust. Guthrie caused a brief public uproar by removing the port master from his post.
During Guthrie's tenure, the treasury had large budget surpluses due to the discovery of gold in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. He used much of these surpluses to pay down the national debt, which shrank from $63 million in 1853 to $25 million in 1857. He also purchased silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
bullion for coinage which aided struggling banks by returning money to circulation and increasing their depleted reserves. He encouraged more efficient processes in the Treasury Department as a whole, and required monthly, rather than quarterly, reports from customs
Customs
Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting and safeguarding customs duties and for controlling the flow of goods including animals, transports, personal effects and hazardous items in and out of a country...
agents. In 1853, he employed Captain Alexander Bowman
Alexander Hamilton Bowman
Alexander Hamilton Bowman was an engineer, military educator, and career officer in the United States Army. Bowman supervised the erection of Charleston Harbor defenses, including Fort Sumter, and served as Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York during the...
of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
United States Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...
to begin construction of an extension to the Treasury Building
Treasury Building (Washington, D.C.)
The Treasury Building in Washington, D.C. is a National Historic Landmark building which is the headquarters of the United States Department of the Treasury....
's south wing. Many considered Guthrie to be the ablest Secretary of the Treasury since Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...
.
At the close of President Pierce's term, Guthrie returned to Louisville to serve as vice-president of struggling the Louisville & Nashville Railroad. He ensured that the link between the two cities was complete in 1859, and in 1860, he succeeded John L. Helm
John L. Helm
John LaRue Helm was the 18th and 24th governor of the U.S. state of Kentucky, although his service in that office totaled less than fourteen months. He also represented Hardin County in both houses of the Kentucky General Assembly and was chosen to be the Speaker of the Kentucky House of...
as president of the railroad. He would continue in his capacity as president through the Civil War.
Kentucky delegates to the 1860 Democratic National Convention
1860 Democratic National Convention
The 1860 Democratic National Convention was one of the crucial events in the lead-up to the American Civil War. Following a fragmented official Democratic National Convention that was adjourned in deadlock, two more presidential nominating conventions took place: a resumed official convention,...
in Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
favored Guthrie for the office of President. A two-thirds majority of delegates was required to secure the nomination. On the first of many ballots, Guthrie received 35 votes; by the thirty-sixth, he was up to 65.5, but still trailed the leading vote-getter Stephen Douglas, by 86 votes. With no candidate able to secure the needed votes, the meeting adjourned and reconvened in Baltimore, Maryland a month later.
At the Baltimore meeting, Guthrie garnered 10 votes on the first ballot. He received 5.5 on the second ballot, which finally saw Douglas attain the necessary majority. Douglas was defeated by Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
in the presidential election
United States presidential election, 1860
The United States presidential election of 1860 was a quadrennial election, held on November 6, 1860, for the office of President of the United States and the immediate impetus for the outbreak of the American Civil War. The nation had been divided throughout the 1850s on questions surrounding the...
. Guthrie was offered the job of Secretary of War
United States Secretary of Defense
The Secretary of Defense is the head and chief executive officer of the Department of Defense of the United States of America. This position corresponds to what is generally known as a Defense Minister in other countries...
by President Lincoln, but he declined because of age and failing health.
In the Civil War
Though a slave holder and states' rights advocate, Guthrie ardently opposed secession. On this topic, he stated "I hate that word secession, because it is a cheat! Call things by their right names! The Southern States have... originated a revolution." He was not convinced that Lincoln's election was an inescapable harbinger of war. He believed the Southern states, if they did not secede, would control Congress and the judiciary, and render Lincoln powerless to impose his agenda upon them.At age 70, Guthrie was elected as one of Kentucky's six delegates to the Peace Conference of 1861
Peace conference of 1861
The Peace Conference of 1861 was a meeting of more than 100 of the leading politicians of the antebellum United States held in Washington, D.C., in February 1861 that was meant to prevent what ultimately became the Civil War. The success of President Abraham Lincoln and the Republican Party in the...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
to devise means to prevent the impending Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. He was chosen to chair the conference's Compromise Committee. He failed in his attempt to re-work and re-introduce the Crittenden Compromise
Crittenden Compromise
The Crittenden Compromise was an unsuccessful proposal introduced by Kentucky Senator John J. Crittenden on December 18, 1860. It aimed to resolve the U.S...
earlier proposed in Congress by fellow Kentuckian John J. Crittenden
John J. Crittenden
John Jordan Crittenden was a politician from the U.S. state of Kentucky. He represented the state in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate and twice served as United States Attorney General in the administrations of William Henry Harrison and Millard Fillmore...
.
The Compromise Committee proposed a plan that included seven constitutional amendments and relied on Henry Clay
Henry Clay
Henry Clay, Sr. , was a lawyer, politician and skilled orator who represented Kentucky separately in both the Senate and in the House of Representatives...
's Missouri Compromise
Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was an agreement passed in 1820 between the pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions in the United States Congress, involving primarily the regulation of slavery in the western territories. It prohibited slavery in the former Louisiana Territory north of the parallel 36°30'...
as a framework. Under the committee's proposal, 36°30' north latitude
Parallel 36°30' north
The parallel 36° 30′ north is a circle of latitude that is 36 and one-half degrees north of the Equator of the Earth. This parallel of latitude is particularly significant in the History of the United States as the line of the Missouri Compromise, which was used to divide the prosepctiveslave and...
would continue to divide slave and free territory in the United States, and no more territory would be annexed except with the consent of equal representation from both slave and free states. The delegates to the convention presented this idea to Congress on February 27, 1861 and asked them to call a national convention to consider the question, but Congress rejected this report.
Guthrie personally appealed to President Lincoln to consider the convention's report, but to no avail. Still convinced that war could be averted, he participated in a convention of border states held at Frankfort in May 1861. This convention also failed to avert the war.
During the war, Guthrie's Louisville and Nashville railroad was of vital importance. It was the only rail line originating in the North and terminating in the South. Early in the war, the line was used to transport supplies to the Confederates
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
in Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, but after 1861, it was used primarily to benefit the Union. Despite pressure to relinquish control to the federal government, Guthrie remained president of the railroad, which became a frequent target for guerrilla attacks. Combining earnings from both passenger and military rates, Guthrie ensured that the line's infrastructure at the close of the war was superior to what it had been before the war started.
Guthrie was a delegate to the 1864 Democratic National Convention
1864 Democratic National Convention
The 1864 Democratic National Convention was held at The Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois. The Convention nominated General George B. McClellan for the Presidency, and Representative George H. Pendleton for the Vice-Presidency. McClellan, age 37 at the time of the convention and Pendleton, age 39,...
in Chicago, Illinois. He voted for the ticket of General George B. McClellan
George B. McClellan
George Brinton McClellan was a major general during the American Civil War. He organized the famous Army of the Potomac and served briefly as the general-in-chief of the Union Army. Early in the war, McClellan played an important role in raising a well-trained and organized army for the Union...
and former Kentucky governor Thomas Bramlette for president and vice-president, respectively. At the convention, he also opposed the Wade-Davis Bill.
In later life
The Kentucky Senate narrowly chose Guthrie over fellow Louisvillian Lovell H. Rousseau for a seat in the U.S. Senate in 1865. In that body, he opposed the Republican PartyRepublican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
's Reconstruction efforts. A supporter of President Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson was the 17th President of the United States . As Vice-President of the United States in 1865, he succeeded Abraham Lincoln following the latter's assassination. Johnson then presided over the initial and contentious Reconstruction era of the United States following the American...
, he opposed the Freedman's Bureau and the passage of the Fourteenth Amendment
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments.Its Citizenship Clause provides a broad definition of citizenship that overruled the Dred Scott v...
.
On February 7, 1868, Guthrie resigned his position due to ill health. He suffered a stroke on April 8, 1868 which left him paralyzed and bedridden for the rest of his life. On June 11, 1868, he resigned as president of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, recommending General William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman was an American soldier, businessman, educator and author. He served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War , for which he received recognition for his outstanding command of military strategy as well as criticism for the harshness of the "scorched...
to be his successor.
Guthrie died in Louisville on March 13, 1869 and was buried in Cave Hill Cemetery. The city of Guthrie, Kentucky
Guthrie, Kentucky
Guthrie is a city in Todd County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 1,469 at the 2000 census. The city is named for James Guthrie, president of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad when the city was incorporated in 1867.-Geography:...
and Guthrie Street in Downtown Louisville
Downtown Louisville
Downtown Louisville is the largest central business district in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the urban hub of the Louisville, Kentucky Metropolitan Area. Its boundaries are the Ohio River to the north, Hancock Street to the east, York and Jacob Streets to the south, and 9th Street to the west...
are named in his honor.